Seagate: Fiscal 4Q15 Financial Results

Seagate Technology plc reported financial results for the quarter and fiscal year ended July 3, 2015.

For the fourth quarter, the company reported revenue of $2.9 billion, gross margin of 26.5%, net income of $138 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.43.

On a non-GAAP basis, which excludes the net impact of certain items, Seagate reported gross margin of 27.2%, net income of $250 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.77.

During the fourth quarter, the company generated $228 million in operating cash flow and returned $351 million to shareholders in the form of dividends and share redemptions.

For the fiscal year ended July 3, 2015, the company reported revenue of $13.7 billion, gross margin of 27.7%, net income of $1.7 billion and diluted earnings per share of $5.26. On a non-GAAP basis, Seagate reported gross margin of 28.1%, net income of $1.5 billion and diluted earnings per share of $4.57.

In fiscal year 2015, the company generated approximately $2.6 billion in operating cash flow and returned $1.8 billion to shareholders in the form of dividends and share redemptions. The company also raised $1.2 billion in investment grade debt in fiscal 2015, extending its weighted average maturity to approximately 9 years and decreasing its weighted average interest to 4.8%. Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash, and short-term investments totaled approximately $2.5 billion at the end of the fiscal year. There were 315 million ordinary shares issued and outstanding as of the end of the fiscal year.

“Over the last few years, Seagate has refined our financial model and global supply chain to allow us to continuously deliver significant value to shareholders and adapt effectively to short-term fluctuations in our business and geographic markets,” said Steve Luczo, chairman and CEO. “While shifting information technology market dynamics have been challenging to accurately predict, we achieved many of our financial goals in fiscal 2015 and remain confident in our long-term growth prospects driven by data growth, cloud and hyperscale deployments and data analytics. Our product portfolio is very well positioned in the traditional storage marketplace, our pipeline of innovation is strong, and our strategic investments in cloud systems and solutions and flash technology are expanding our opportunities with new and existing customers.”

The board of directors has approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.54 per share, which will be payable on August 25, 2015 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on August 11, 2015. The payment of any future quarterly dividends will be at the discretion of the Board and will be dependent upon Seagate’s financial position, results of operations, available cash, cash flow, capital requirements and other factors deemed relevant by the board.